This week has been a fun one. Friday alone, actually, was enough to fill a blog post.
This week has been another week of wonderful moments with my girl, Sarah. Did you know that she calls me "girlfriend" ever time we greet or part one another? I love it. She and I have grown so close lately. We love to talk about Jesus, share scripture, and pray together. We've asked God specifically for help and healing with a few things this week and he came through in incredible ways. I love to see God answer prayer- it's like watching my faith build right in front of my eyes. He's proven himself so trustworthy. Sarah and I are both learning a lot about what it means to come before our father boldly (So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most. Hebrews 4:16) and seek his help. I spoke with some friends recently about being transparent in leadership. If you are open and honest about your struggles, it will encourage the people you are with to also be forthcoming about their struggles. When you are real about the things that matter, others feel the freedom to be real, too. I decided that this was something that I wanted to implement in my time with Sarah. it wasn't long before I was challenged by the daily devotional we use each day (Jesus Calling) to do exactly that. I shared my struggles with something in particular, and that made Sarah feel comfortable enough to share hers. We were able to confess our struggles and then pray about them, laying them at the feet of Jesus. It was real. It was beautiful. It was sisterhood.
Sarah and I worked together to clean out the IChooseYou office. Basically, I pulled everything out of every drawer, nook, and cranny, and she decided what needed to be kept and what could be tossed. I then put every receipt, office supply, and school report away in its proper place. It was so much fun! Organization makes me giddy. For real, I love it.
When I showed up to the school on Friday, I was pleasantly surprised by what greeted me: sports day! Children from all of the other primary schools in Mbale came to Covenant Primary for a day of competitive football (soccer), volleyball, and netball. Read more about it and check out some beautiful photos on the IChooseYou blog: www.ichooseyoublog.blogspot.com
One day, as I was getting ready to set up a Skype session between one of our IChooseYou kids and her sponsors, I noticed one of our other little girls, crying outside of her classroom. I asked her what was wrong. Her friends informed me that she had been wrongly accused of stealing some crayons, so her teacher punished her in front of the class. Large tears of unwarranted shame rolled down this usually cheerful girl's face. As I held her and whispered soft words of encouragement, I was suddenly struck with understanding of how lucky I was to be the one holding her. Of all the people in the world, I was the one entrusted to comfort her in that moment. I was the one entrusted with her heart. I have been entrusted with many hearts.
I felt a responsibility land on my shoulders, not heavy or burdensome, just a brand new understanding of the place I have in the world of these beautiful children, at this exact moment of their lives. I love the fact that I get to be here for the little, unexpected moments. I see great importance in the things that, on paper, I'm here to do; the office work, the tutoring, and the Bible studies. But I so cherish the things I don't see coming. I feel so blessed that I get to be a small part of it, a small part of their lives. Because their lives are a big deal. These children are important to God, and every minute of their growing up is seen by him. To be a character in the great story of their lives is an honor and the realization is humbling. I am constantly having to make choices; who I will speak to, what I will say, what I will do. When a child comes to me, in need of compassion, patience, or understanding, will I rise to the occasion? Will I recognize the moments to seize and seize them, or will I let them pass me by? I want so desperately to be a person who see these children as Jesus does. I want to take every opportunity to pour out anything and everything that I can, in order to love them better.
That love that I so desperately wish for them to know, always, always points to Jesus. Sarah asked me a few days ago what I want for our children. I want them to learn to work hard, to become successful in their lives, and to be happy people. But really, more than anything, I want them to understand the love of Jesus and to love him back. If I can show them even a tiny sliver of his love, then I will be satisfied. I love the moments that I don't see coming. They tend to be the best opportunities to love. I'm well aware that these children may not remember me throughout their lives. This incident was not the end of the world for this little girl, and it may have even been forgotten by the next morning. It probably won't be something that my little friend remembers, but I won't soon forget it. I love that I got to be there for that. I love that I get to be there for the tears, for the soccer games, for the impromptu dance parties. It's an honor to be a part of it; an honor that I won't take for granted.
Em
Sarah and I worked together to clean out the IChooseYou office. Basically, I pulled everything out of every drawer, nook, and cranny, and she decided what needed to be kept and what could be tossed. I then put every receipt, office supply, and school report away in its proper place. It was so much fun! Organization makes me giddy. For real, I love it.
When I showed up to the school on Friday, I was pleasantly surprised by what greeted me: sports day! Children from all of the other primary schools in Mbale came to Covenant Primary for a day of competitive football (soccer), volleyball, and netball. Read more about it and check out some beautiful photos on the IChooseYou blog: www.ichooseyoublog.blogspot.com
One day, as I was getting ready to set up a Skype session between one of our IChooseYou kids and her sponsors, I noticed one of our other little girls, crying outside of her classroom. I asked her what was wrong. Her friends informed me that she had been wrongly accused of stealing some crayons, so her teacher punished her in front of the class. Large tears of unwarranted shame rolled down this usually cheerful girl's face. As I held her and whispered soft words of encouragement, I was suddenly struck with understanding of how lucky I was to be the one holding her. Of all the people in the world, I was the one entrusted to comfort her in that moment. I was the one entrusted with her heart. I have been entrusted with many hearts.
I felt a responsibility land on my shoulders, not heavy or burdensome, just a brand new understanding of the place I have in the world of these beautiful children, at this exact moment of their lives. I love the fact that I get to be here for the little, unexpected moments. I see great importance in the things that, on paper, I'm here to do; the office work, the tutoring, and the Bible studies. But I so cherish the things I don't see coming. I feel so blessed that I get to be a small part of it, a small part of their lives. Because their lives are a big deal. These children are important to God, and every minute of their growing up is seen by him. To be a character in the great story of their lives is an honor and the realization is humbling. I am constantly having to make choices; who I will speak to, what I will say, what I will do. When a child comes to me, in need of compassion, patience, or understanding, will I rise to the occasion? Will I recognize the moments to seize and seize them, or will I let them pass me by? I want so desperately to be a person who see these children as Jesus does. I want to take every opportunity to pour out anything and everything that I can, in order to love them better.
That love that I so desperately wish for them to know, always, always points to Jesus. Sarah asked me a few days ago what I want for our children. I want them to learn to work hard, to become successful in their lives, and to be happy people. But really, more than anything, I want them to understand the love of Jesus and to love him back. If I can show them even a tiny sliver of his love, then I will be satisfied. I love the moments that I don't see coming. They tend to be the best opportunities to love. I'm well aware that these children may not remember me throughout their lives. This incident was not the end of the world for this little girl, and it may have even been forgotten by the next morning. It probably won't be something that my little friend remembers, but I won't soon forget it. I love that I got to be there for that. I love that I get to be there for the tears, for the soccer games, for the impromptu dance parties. It's an honor to be a part of it; an honor that I won't take for granted.
Em
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